Donald Trump's first reaction to Beto O'Rourke's 2020 campaign launch on Thursday had nothing to do with what the former Texas congressman said – because the president didn't hear a word of it.

A White House official told DailyMail.com hours after Trump scoffed at O'Rourke's 'hand movements' that the president had seen 'a few minutes' of the Democrat's first campaign event in Keokuk, Iowa, but had the sound off.

Asked two hours later in the Oval Office for a verdict on O'Rourke, Trump's response was muted: 'Well I think he's got a lot of hand movement. I've never seen so much hand movement.'

'I said, "Is he crazy? Or is that just the way he acts?"' the president said. 'I watched him a little while this morning doing – I assume it was some kind of a news conference. And I've actually never seen anything quite like it. Study it. I'm sure you'll agree.'

Trump is himself known as an arm-waver, entertaining rally audiences with hand movements that range from fist-pumps to full-wingspans for emphasis, and everything in between. And as he spoke on Thursday, his own mittens left his lap several times.

O'Rourke's launch video, a three-minute clip released before his Iowa appearances, also featured a steady drumming of his right arm. The official did not say whether Trump saw that video as well, nor whether he caught a glimpse of the Iowa event in the West Wing or in the White House residence.

Donald Trump Mocked Beto O'Rourke's presidential campaign rollout on Thursday, saying he watched on TV and the Texan had 'a lot of hand movement' – and then moved his hands around

Trump watched a few minutes of O'Rourke's first campaign event in Keokuk, Iowa, with the sound off, a White House official said, which would explain why the president had no comment to offer about anything the new Demorcatic candidate said

The Keokuk event, a Q-and-A session with voters at an art suppy store that doubles as a coffeeshop, aired live on CNN and MSNBC. Fox News Channel, the president's preferred binge-watch channel, aired coverage of the United Kingdom's Brexit crisis instead.

Trump has repeatedly blasted the idea of a serious presidential campaign mounted by a former city councilman and 6-year congressman who couldn't beat Sen. Ted Cruz in his home state, calling him a 'flake' and a 'total lightweight' and joking, 'I thought you were supposed to win before you run for president.'

Had Trump been listening to him on Thursday, he would have heard a dire warning that parts of planet Earth will soon become uninhabitable, driving a massive wave of climate 'refugees' across the U.S. border – if America's government doesn't adopt emergency measures within the next 12 years.

A sweater-clad O'Rourke, 46, told a smallish crowd that by the time his 12-year-old son is his age 'we may not be able to live in cities that we call home today, like El Paso, Texas. We may not be able to grow our own food and fiber, feed and clothe ourselves in this country.'

And in a silent nod to his differences with Trump on immigration issues, he downplayed the present national security threat of ever-larger seas of humanity crossing into the U.S. from Mexico and nations further to the south. It will get worse unless the planet heals, he warned.

President Trump is known for his own 'hand movement' on the campaign trail, gesticulations that can be intimate or broad depending on the crowd energy

O'Rourke struck a dour tone in his first presidential campaign appearance, saying the world faces catastrophe and massive climate 'refugee' flows unless America fixes the planet (and did it with 'hand movement')

'If you think 300,000 immigrants and asylum-seekers apprehended on the southern border is a problem – and I don't necessarily think that it is,' he said, 'the kind of migration and refugee flows that we will see when entire bands of this world are no longer habitable will be a crisis of a different magnitude altogether.'

'We face catastrophe and crisis on this planet,' he insisted in a dour note, 'even if we were to stop emitting carbon today right now at this moment.'

Democrats on their party's far left wing have proposed a 'Green New Deal' that would spend tens of trillions of dollars to reshape the U.S. economy along environmental lines, eliminating air travel and gasoline-powered cars and replacing countless buildings with greener versions. O'Rourke didn't formally endorse the proposal on Thursday but said it's the best proposal he's heard.

'Some will criticize the Green New Deal for being too bold or being unmanageable. I tell you what: I haven't seen anything better that addresses this singular crisis we face, a crisis that could at its worst lead to extinction,' he said.

'Literally, not to be melodramatic, but the future of the world depends on us, right now, here where we are.'

Beto O' Rourke formally announced he is running for president in 2020, putting an end to months of speculation about his political ambitions

O'Rourke, 46, all-but confirmed his candidacy on Wednesday when he sent this message to a Texas radio station, talking about his bid

Thursday's launch video The features an up-and-down bobbing O'Rourke speaking as his wife Amy holds his arm and smiles. Tapping into the marquee issue that defines border zones like his native El Paso, Texas, he declares that 'if immigration is a problem, it's the best possible problem for this country to have'

He painted an apocalyptic picture of America's future, claiming global warming will unleash 'massive migration of tens or hundreds of millions of people from countries that are literally uninhabitable or under water, that are above the sea right now.'

'Let us all be well aware that life is going to be a lot tougher for the generations that follow us, no matter what we do. It is only a matter of degrees,' he said.

'And along this current trajectory there will be people who can no longer live in the cities that they call home today. There is food grown in the country that will no longer prosper in these soils. There is going to be massive migration of tens or hundreds of millions of people from countries that are literally uninhabitable or under water, that are above the sea right now. This is our final chance. The scientists are absolutely unanimous on this, that we have no more than 12 years to take incredibly bold action on this crisis.'

O'Rourke said entire portions of the planet will soon be uninhabitable and the crisis could, at worst, lead to the extinction of the human race

White House Deputy Press Secretary John Hogan Gidley – who goes by 'Hogan' – mocked Beto O'Rourke as 'Robert Francis,' suggesting he dropped his given names as an ethnic affectation

O'Rourke's campaign website featured no policy platforms or political issues as he announced he was running for president — only fundraising buttons and a merchandise store

O'Rourke's online campaign began Thursday with announcements emailed in English and Spanish. An interview with CBS News will air Friday morning. And he will head to Iowa for three days of hand-to-hand campaigning. But in a head-scratching political move, the liberal media darling won't have an official launch speech until March 30.

And while his campaign website was heavy on merchandise and fundraising buttons as he announced his candidacy, there was no sign at all of policies, political positions or his video — only a photo of a sweat-dripping Beto with microphone in hand.

The much-anticipated O'Rourke rollout was marked by a clumsy lack of coordination that left his supporters looking for a launch video for an hour before his campaign organization posted it on Twitter. O'Rourke's hometown newspaper, the El Paso Times, had it ahead of time, but no other news organization.

And he confirmed his plans in a text message to an El Paso television station Wednesday night, leaving reporters across the country wondering whether they had missed the big reveal.

Thursday's video features an up-and-down bobbing O'Rourke speaking as his wife Amy holds his arm and smiles. Tapping into the marquee issue that defines border zones like his native El Paso, Texas, he declares that 'if immigration is a problem, it's the best possible problem for this country to have.'

'We should ensure that there are lawful paths to work, to be with family and to flee persecution.'

An anti-O'Rourke ad running this week in Iowa describes him as a culture-appropriating Irishman who pretends to be Hispanic and leads a life of privilege; 'He's Barack Obama, but white,' the ad claims

The conservative Club For Growth purchased TV time in Iowa for an ad blasting the Texas Democrat as an entitled son-in-law of a rich real estate developer who is guilty of cultural appropriation because he downplays his Irish and Welsh ancestry in favor of 'pretending' to be Hispanic.

'He's Barack Obama, but white,' the ad claims, parroting a description once offered in a Politico story.

The ad also describes O'Rourke as living a 'charmed life' of 'white male privilege' including preferential treatement after a DWI arrest at age 26, and claims he has escaped the consequences of 'behavior a woman or a person of color could never get away with.'

WHO ARE ALL THE 15 DEMOCRATS RUNNING FOR THE PRESIDENCY IN 2020?

ELIZABETH WARREN

Age on Inauguration Day: 71

Entered race: Set up exploratory committee December 31, 2018

Career: Law lecturer and academic who became an expert on bankruptcy law and tenured Harvard professor. Ran for Senate and won in 2012, defeating sitting Republican Scott Brown, held it in 2018 60% to 36%. Was short-listed to be Hillary's running mate and campaigned hard for her in 2016

Family: Twice-married mother of two and grandmother of three. First husband and father of her children was her high-school sweetheart. Second husband Bruce Mann is Harvard law professor. Daughter Amelia Tyagi and son Alex Warren have both been involved in her campaigns. Has controversially claimed Native American roots; DNA test suggested she is as little as 1,064th Native American

Religion: Raised Methodist, now described as Christian with no fixed church

Views on key issues: Voted Republican until 1995 but has tacked left since. Pro: higher taxes on rich; banking regulation; Dream Act path to citizenship for 'dreamers'; abortion and gay rights; campaign finance restrictions; and expansion of public provision of healthcare - although still to spell out exactly how that would happen. Against: U.S. presence in Afghanistan and Syria; liberalization of gambling

Slogan: To be announced

KAMALA HARRIS

Age on Inauguration Day: 56

Entered race: Announced she was running January 21, 2018 - Martin Luther King Jr. Day - on Good Morning America. Formally entered race January 27

Career: Howard and U.C. Hunter law school grad who worked as assistant district attorney in Alameda County, CA, then in San Francisco's DA's office before being elected San Francisco DA in 2003 and used it as springboard to run successfully for California attorney general in 2010. Won again in 2014 and was at center of U.S. attorney general and Supreme Court speculation but also endured a series of controversies, including over police brutality allegations. Ran for Senate in 2016 and established herself on liberal wing of party

Family: Born in Berkeley, CA, to immigrant Indian Tamil mother and Jamaican father who were both academics and brought up from seven to 18 in Montreal, Canada. Dated married San Francisco mayor Willie Brown, when he was 60 and she was 29. Married attorney Douglas Emhoff in 2014 and has two stepchildren; Cole, an aspiring actor, and Ella, an art and design student. Sister Maya was a Hillary Clinton adviser and brother-in-law Tony West is Uber's chief legal counsel. Would be first female, first Indian-American and first female black president

Views on key issues: Social ultra-liberal who has rejected criticisms of 'identity politics' and is running without a political action committee, which will make her reliant on small donors. Has shifted left on criminal justice reform; supports Medicare for all; pro-gun control and anti-death penalty; says illegal immigration is a civil not a criminal offense

Religion: Has said she was brought up in both Baptist and Hindu tradition

Slogan: Kamala Harris: For The People

BERNIE SANDERS

Age on Inauguration Day: 79

Entered race: Sources said on January 25, 2019, that he would form exploratory committee. Officially announced February 19

Career: Student civil rights and anti-Vietnam activist who moved to Vermont and worked as a carpenter and radical film-maker. Serial failed political candidate in the 1970s, he ran as a socialist for mayor of Burlington in 1980 and served two terms ending in 1989, and win a seat in Congress as an independent in 1990. Ran for Senate in 2006 elections as an independent with Democratic endorsement and won third term in 2018. Challenged Hillary Clinton for the Democratic nomination in 2016 but lost. Campaign has since been hit by allegations of sexual harassment - for which he has apologized - and criticized for its 'Bernie bro' culture

Family: Born to a Jewish immigrant father and the daughter of Jewish immigrant parents in Brooklyn, New York. First marriage to college sweetheart Deboarah Shiling Messing in 1964 ended in divorce in 1966; had son Levi in 1969 with then girlfriend Susan Cambell Mott. Married Jone O'Meara in 1988 and considers her three children, all adults, his own. The couple have seven grandchildren. His older brother Larry is a former Green Party councilor in Oxfordshire, England

Religion: Secular Jewish

Views on key issues: Openly socialist and standard bearer for the Democratic party's left-turn. Wants federal $15 minimum wage; banks broken up; union membership encouraged; free college tuition; universal health care; re-distributive taxation; he opposed Iraq War and also U.S. leading the fight against ISIS and wants troops largely out of Afghanistan and the Middle East

Slogan: To be announced

KIRSTEN GILLIBRAND

Age on Inauguration Day: 54

Entered race: Announced exploratory committee on Stephen Colbert's CBS show on January 16, 2019

Career: Dartmouth and UCLA law grad who was a high-flying Manhattan attorney representing big businesses. Says she was inspired to enter politics by hearing Hillary Clinton speak, although she is also scion of a prominent New York Democratic political family. Won New York's 20th district, centered on Albany in 2004; appointed to Hillary Clinton's senate seat in 2008 and won it in 2010 special election 63-35; won first full term 2012 and re-elected 67-33 in 2018

Family: Married to British venture capitalist Jonathan Gillibrand with two sons, Theodore, 15, and Henry, ten. Father Douglas Lutnik was Democratic lobbyist; grandmother Polly Noonan was at center of Albany Democratic politics. Would be first female president

Religion: Catholic

Views on key issues: Initially pro-gun as Congresswoman, has since reversed herself to be pro-gun control and also pro-immigration; said Bill Clinton should have resigned over Monica Lewinsky and helped force Al Franken out of Senate over groping allegations; in favor of single-payer healthcare and Medicare for all

Slogan: To be announced

CORY BOOKER

Age on Inauguration Day: 51

Entered race: Announced he was running February 1, 2019

Career: High school football star who went to Stanford or undergraduate and masters degrees before studying in Oxford as a Rhodes scholar and Yale Law School. Worked for advocacy and youth projects and successfully ran for Newark, New Jersey, city council in 1998. Narrowly lost mayoral election in 2002 facing claims he was 'suburban' and 'not black enough.' Ran again in 2006 and won landslide on radical reform platform for troubled city, including being tough on crime, cutting budget deficit, increasing affordable housing and tackling failing schools - controversially taking a huge donation from Mark Zuckerberg for the city. Ran for New Jersey senate seat in 2013 special election and won; won full term in 2014

Family: Single. Parents Cary and Carolyn were among IBM's first black executives. Brother Cary Jr. is education adviser to New Jersey's Democratic governor. Would be first bachelor president since James Buchanan, who was in the White House from 1857 to 1861

Entered race: Announced candidacy February 10, 2019 at snow-drenched rally in her native Minneapolis

Career: Yale and University of Chicago law graduate who became a corporate lawyer. First ran unsuccessfully for office in 1994 as Hennepin, MI, county attorney, and won same race in 1998, then in 2002, without opposition. Ran for Senate in 2006 and won 58-38; re-elected in 2012 and 2018

Family: Married to John Bessler, law professor at University of Baltimore and expert on capital punishment. Daughter Abigail Bessler, 23, works fora Democratic member of New York City council. Father Jim, 90, was a veteran newspaper columnist who has written a memoir of how his alcoholism hurt his family; mom Rose is a retired grade school teacher

Religion: Congregationalist (United Church of Christ)

Views on key issues: Seen as a mainstream liberal: says she wants 'universal health care' but has not spelled out how; pro-gun control; pro-choice; backs $15 minimum wage; no public statements on federal marijuana legalization; has backed pro-Israel law banning the 'boycott, divestment and sanctions' movement; spoke out against abolishing ICE

Slogan: To be announced

BETO O'ROURKE

Age on Inauguration Day: 47

Entered race: March 14, 2019

Career: Born Robert Francis O'Rourke. Boarding-school educated Columbia grad who lived in a New York loft, playing in a punk band and doing desultory jobs and setting up an internet firm. Ran for El Paso city council in 2005, winning re-election and serving until 2012. Ran for Congress in 2012, defeating eight-term Democratic incumbent in primary. Gave up seat to run for Senate against Ted Cruz in 2018, losing 51-48

Family: Married to wife Amy Sanders, nine years his junior, with sons Ulysses and Henry, and daughter Molly. Father Pat was long-time El Paso politician who switched from Democrat to Republican; mom Melissa ran family-owned store in city until selling it after IRS probe. Melissa's stepfather Fred Korth was one of JFK's secretaries of the Navy. Father-in-law William Saunders is real estate developer estimated to be worth $500 million

Religion: Catholic

Views on key issues: Wants comprehensive immigration reform to give citizenship to 'dreamers' and a path to it for their parents, and vehemently opposes Trump's wall. Supports federal marijuana legalization. Pro-gun control including an assault rifle ban and universal background checks. Supports single-payer health care but with co-pays and has backed Medicaid expansion. Strongly pro-choice. Has hinted at backing breaking up tech giants. Said he would have voted for impeachment in Congress if he had had the chance

Slogan: To be announced

JULIAN CASTRO

Age on Inauguration Day: 46

Entered race: January 12, 2018, at rally in his native San Antonio, TX. Had formed exploratory committee two months previously

Career: Stanford and Harvard graduate who was a San Antonio councilman at 26 and became mayor in 2009. Was Obama's Housing and Urban Development secretary from 2014 to 2016

Family: Married with nine-year-old daughter, Carina, and four-year-old son, Cristian. His identical twin Joaquin, who is a minute younger, is Democratic congressman. Mother Maria del Rosario Castro was part of 'radical' third party for Mexican-Americans; father left his wife and five children for her but they never married. Would be first Hispanic-American president - announced his run in English and Spanish - and first-ever U.S. president with a twin

Religion: Catholic

Views on key issues: Wants medicare for all; universal pre-K; action on affordable housing; will not take money from political action committees (PACs) tied to corporations or unions. Other views still to be announced

Slogan: One Nation. One Destiny

JAY INSLEE

Age on Inauguration Day: 69

Entered race: March 1, 2019

Career: Stanford drop-out who graduated from University of Washington and Williamette University School of Law before working as a city prosecutor in Selah, WA. First elected to Washington House of Representatives in 1989 and again in 1990; won Congressional seat in 1992 elections but lost in 1994 and then had failed 1996 gubernatorial run. Returned to Congress in 1998 elections and stayed until 2012 to run for governor. Won first term 51.5 to 48.5; re-elected in 2016 by 54.4 to 45.6

Family: Born in Seattle to late parents Frank, a Navy veteran and high school teacher and coach, and Adele, a Sears sales clerk. Married high school and college sweetheart Trudi since 1972. Three adult sons Jack, a radio producer in Washington D.C.; Connor, director of a Washington state non-profit for the disabled; and Joe, who works for King County, WA's department of natural resources and parks. Grandfather of three

Religion: Non-denominational Protestant

Views on key issues: Running to combat climate change with praise for Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's Green New Deal - his record in Washington D.C. including aspiring to 'zero emissions' buildings and largely eliminate fossil fuel use; vocal gun control advocate; fought Trump's ban on entry to people from seven Muslim-majority countries; called moratorium on death penalty in Washington; supported marijuana legalization in Washington and expected to do so federally; will not take money from political action committees; healthcare position still unclear

Slogan: Our moment

JOHN HICKENLOOPER

Age on Inauguration Day: 68

Entered race: March 4, 2019 with Good Morning America interview

Career: Wesleyan University-educated geologist who moved to Colorado to work in petroleum industry but was laid off and started Wynkoop Brewing Company, the first craft brewpub in 1988 in Denver's LoDo (lower downtown) area. Ran for mayor of Denver as an outsider in 2003 and won, then won a second term in 2007. Ran for Colorado governor in 2010 and won 51 per cent of the vote; his nearest rival took 36.5 per cent. Won re-election 49.3 to 46 in 2014, but was term limited and ended his second term in January 2019

Family: Married to second wife Robin Pringle, 40, a vice president at LibertyMedia Corp., owners of Sirius XM. Divorced first wife Helen Thorpe in 2012 after 10 years of marriage; ex-couple have son Teddy, a high school student. Born and brought up in Narbeth, in the Main Line of Philadelphia, his father's ancestors include Civil War Union general Andrew Hickenlooper

Religion: Quaker

Views on key issues: Voiced support for Green New Deal but has also been in favor of fracking; has not embraced single-payer healthcare but expanded Medicaid in Colorado; long record of being pro-gun control; pro-choice but has gone out of his way to talk about reducing unplanned teenage pregnancies ; opposed to the death penalty; advocated for gay marriage

Slogan: To be announced

PETE BUTTIGIEG

Age on Inauguration Day: 39

Entered race: Announced formation of exploratory committee January 23, 2019

Career: Harvard grad and Rhodes scholar who got a second degree from Oxford before working as a McKinsey management consultant and being commissioned as a Navy Reserve intelligence officer. Elected South Ben mayor in 2011 and served in combat in 2013, won re-election in 2015

Family: Came out as gay during second mayoral run and married husband Chasten Glezman, a middle school teacher in 2018. Parents were University of Notre Dame academics. Surname is pronounced BOTT-edge-edge. Would be first openly gay president and first combat veteran since George H.W. Bush

Religion: Episcopalian

Views on key issues: Has said Democratic party needs a 'fresh start'; wrote an essay in praise of Bernie Sanders aged 17; backed paid parental leave for city employees; other policies unknown

Slogan: To be announced

TULSI GABBARD

Age on Inauguration Day: 39

Entered race: Still to formally file any papers but said she would run on January 11 2019

Career: Born on American Samoa, a territory, and therefore may be subject to questions over whether she is natural-born. Raised largely in Hawaii, she co-founded an environmental non-profit with her father as a teenager and was elected to the State Legislature aged 21, its youngest member in history. Enlisted in the National Guard and served two tours, one in Iraq 2004-2006, then as an officer in Kuwait in 2009. Ran for Honolulu City Council in 2011, and House of Representatives in 2012

Family: Married to her second husband, Abraham Williams, a cinematographer since 2015. First marriage to childhood sweetheart Eduardo Tamayo in 2002 ended in 2006. Father Mike Gabbard is a Democratic Hawaii state senator, mother Carol Porter runs a non-profit. Would be first Samoan-American, first Hindu and first female president

Religion: Hindu

Views on key issues: Has apologized for anti-abortion and anti-gay marriage views; wants marijuana federally legalized; opposed to most U.S. foreign interventions; backs $15 minimum wage and universal health care; was the second elected Democrat to meet Trump after his 2016 victory

Slogan: To be announced

JOHN DELANEY

Age on Inauguration Day: 57

Entered race: Filed papers July 28, 2017

Career: Three-time Maryland congressman, first winning election in 2012. Previously set up publicly-traded companies lending capital to healthcare and mid-size businesses and was youngest CEO at the time of a New York Stock Exchange-listed firm

Family: Married father of four; wife April works for children's issues nonprofit

Religion: Catholic

Views on key issues: Social liberal in favor of legalized pot and gun control but not single-payer healthcare; fiscally conservative

Slogan: Focus on the Future

ANDREW YANG

Age on Inauguration Day: 46

Entered race: Filed papers November 6, 2018

Career: Started a dotcom flop then become healthcare and education tech executive who set up nonprofit Venture for America

Family: Married father of two; would be first Asian-American president

Religion: Reformed Church

Views on key issues: Warns of rise of robots and artificial intelligence, wants $1,000 a month universal basic income and social media regulated

Career: Dropped out of Pomona College, California, became part of the counter culture and anti-war movement and ran a 'metaphysical bookstore' before publishing spiritual guide A Return to Love and being praised by Oprah, sending it to number one. Published series of follow-ups and founded AIDS charity and subsequently more non-profits including a peace movement. Ran for Congress in 2014 and lost

Family: Born to immigration attorney father Sam and housewife mother Sophie in Houston, Texas. Married for 'a minute and a half' to unnamed man; daughter India was born in 1990 but Williamson declines to name her father

Religion: Jewish

Views on key issues: Wants vast expansion of physical and mental healthcare; and nutrition and lifestyle reforms including ban on marketing processed and sugary foods to children; universal pre-K; much of the Green New Deal's proposals including a de-carbonized economy, electric cars and rebuilding mass transit; gun control through licensing; wants more vacation time; pro decriminalizing all drugs

Slogan: Join the Evolution

AND THOSE WHO'VE ALREADY WITHDRAWN

RICHARD OJEDA. West Virginia ex- state senator and paratrooper veteran